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"I have never welcomed the weakening of family ties by politics or pressure" - Nelson Mandela."He who travels for love finds a thousand miles no longer than one" - Japanese proverb."Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence." - Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights."When people's love is divided by law, it is the law that needs to change". - David Cameron.

Wednesday, 14 May 2014

Renouncing British citizenship for dual nationals - and family life

This may be of interest to those who are lucky enough to have dual nationality with another EU country (e.g. Ireland). As many know, the EU protects free movement for citizens and their family members - that's the whole basis of the Surinder Singh route. So whatever restrictions on family life an EU member state places on its citizens, the right to settle elsewhere (i.e. outside the home country) is protected - not just in the EU, but throughout the EEA.

Renouncing British citizenship, although drastic, may be worth looking into. This is a big step so it's advisable to consult with a qualifieid legal practitioner before making this decision.

'Just in case anyone is curious I can confirm that this method works as of Winter/Spring 2014.

'I was born in the UK as a UK citizen and also eligible for Irish citizenship but had never registered myself to claim it. I have lived in the UK my whole life. Over the summer of 2013 I registered myself as an Irish foreign birth, gained citizenship, applied for an Irish passport, renounced my UK citizenship, married my US citizen wife in the US and applied for an EEA FP in September 2013. We received the FP within a week and my wife moved from the US to the UK in December. We have just received her EEA2 residence card which we applied for in January.

'A bit of a faff with paperwork to say the least but it cost us several hundred pounds and several months less than a UK spouse visa for which we were not eligible due to my low income as a PhD student. I was not returned my UK passport after renunciation.'